Steve Henson has a relationship with OU head coach Lon Kruger that dates back more than 25 years. Henson, who spent seven seasons at UNLV as an assistant coach under Kruger immediately before coming to Norman, also worked for him in the NBA and at the University of Illinois, and starred under him at Kansas State University as a player in the late 1980s.

Henson, 47, arrived at UNLV in the spring of 2004 and helped the Runnin’ Rebels to a 161-71 (.694) record and to six postseason appearances (four NCAA Tournaments). The last five seasons, the Rebels averaged 25.4 wins. In the summer of 2007, following UNLV’s run to the Sweet 16, Rivals.com recognized Henson as one of the top 25 assistant coaches in the country.

Prior to his stint at UNLV, Henson spent one year (2003-04) as an assistant coach at the University of South Florida. Before that, he served two years on the Atlanta Hawks staff, one as an advance scout in 2001-02 and the other as an assistant coach in 2002-03. Kruger and former OU standout Terry Stotts were the Hawks’ head coaches while Henson was on staff.

Henson also worked for Kruger at Illinois as an assistant coach in 1999-2000 when the Illini finished 22-10 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament second round.

A four-year starting point guard at Kansas State, Henson played from the 1986-87 through 1989-90 seasons. He earned All-Big Eight Conference honors as a junior and senior and was also named an honorable mention All-American both seasons. He is the only player in school history to play in four consecutive NCAA Tournaments. As a sophomore in 1987-88, he helped the Wildcats to a 25-9 record and to the Elite Eight.

Henson led KSU in scoring his final two years, averaging 18.5 points as a junior and 17.4 as a senior. He holds three of the top four free throw percentages in school history, led the nation as a sophomore (.925) and finished second as a junior (.920).

Henson still holds Kansas State career records for assists (582), assists per game (4.58), free throw percentage (.900), minutes (4,474), minutes played (35.2), starts (118), consecutive games played (127) and consecutive starts (118).

The Henson File

Hometown

McPherson, Kan.

College

Kansas State, 1990

Family

wife, Cindy sons, Quinton and Pearson

Coaching History

2011-present, Oklahoma Assistant Coach

2004-2011, UNLV Assistant Coach

2003-2004, South Florida Assistant Coach

2002-2003, Atlanta Hawks Assistant Coach

1990-2000, Illinois Assistant Coach

Playing Experience

1986-90, Kansas State University

He also ranks in the top five in seven other career categories, including second in 3-point field goals (240), 3-point field goal percentage (.447) and steals (190), and third in 3-point field goal attempts (537). He ranks No. 4 in career free throw makes (361) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.98), No. 6 in career games played (127) and career scoring (1,655), and No. 7 in career field goals made (527).

Henson was also a decathlete at Kansas State, placing third as a sophomore and junior at the Big Eight Conference Championships. As a junior at the 1989 Big Eight meet, he finished third overall with 6,886 points, winning the javelin and high jump and placing second in the discus, pole vault and 1,500-meter run. Henson was named to the university’s all-century team that was selected in February 2003, and in October 2009 was inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the K-State Athletics Hall of Fame in October 2013.

Picked by the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round of the 1990 NBA Draft with the 44th overall selection, Henson played with five teams in the NBA: Milwaukee, Atlanta, Charlotte, Portland and Detroit. He also played three seasons in Italy and Greece.

A native of McPherson, Kan., Henson graduated from Kansas State in 1990 with a degree in human movement. He and his wife, Cindy, are the parents of two sons: Quinton (18) and Pearson (16).

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